Housing prices have
tremendously appreciated year-over-year and have surpassed all
median home prices for the county since 2008, closing out 2013
at five-year highs. April 2014 saw a slight decline in the median,
falling by $4,000 to a price of $576,000. This is the second highest
median for the year thus far, with an increase of $41,000 since
the previous April.

Average apartment rents for Orange County have spiked with housing price growth,
typically $72 more on average for 2014 each month compared to
the previous year’s equivalent average. After February 2014’s
large spike, average rental rates in April have declined to an
average of $1,691 – a decrease of $31 versus March 2014 but an
increase of $47 compared to last April.

The number of residential building permits in Orange County receded significantly
in January 2014 but saw ample growth in February 2014. Orange
County permits increased to 828 in March, an increase of 26 since
the previous month, and showing healthy year-over-year growth.
Irvine comprised only 10 percent of permit activity in Orange
County, while Huntington Beach led with 127 permits issued in
March 2014 – roughly 15 percent of new permits for the month.

Orange County’s median home price is compared to other regions, showing
the year-over-year and month-over-month change in value.

Source: Dataquick

Average
Apartment Rents Orange County and by Major City

This indicator shows the average apartment rent for major Orange County
cities and for the county average as a whole. The county average as a whole
is not the average of the seven cities shown in this chart but for all the
cities in Orange County.